The True Makaria
Pastor David T. Elms 8/10/2025
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Summary
Pastor David T. Elms explores the profound necessity of being 'poor in spirit,' challenging the congregation to trade cultural attitudes of self-sufficiency for a heart of desperate, humble dependence on God. Drawing from the Sermon on the Mount, he emphasizes that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who recognize their spiritual poverty and approach Father God as beggars.
Key points
- •The first Beatitude, 'Blessed are the poor in spirit,' is the foundational characteristic of a disciple and the entry point into the Kingdom of Heaven.
- •True spiritual poverty is not a vow of material lack, but a disposition of heart where one recognizes their utter destitution and total dependence on God.
- •The world and even parts of the modern church prize confidence, self-sufficiency, and prestige, but God resists the proud and gives grace to those who approach Him as beggars.
- •Growth in the Kingdom is paradoxical: we go up by going down, and we are exalted only when we choose to humble ourselves before God.
Scripture
Humility
The Beatitudes
Spiritual Hunger
Discipleship
Kingdom of Heaven
Life application
This week, set aside time in your daily prayer to specifically verbalize your 'poverty' to God. Instead of approaching Him with a list of demands or a mindset of entitlement, start by acknowledging that without His grace and presence, you are spiritually destitute.
Reflection questions
- Why do you think Jesus chose 'poor in spirit' as the very first character trait of His kingdom?
- Pastor Elms mentioned the 'three most dangerous words' are 'I got it.' In what areas of your life (marriage, ministry, career) have you started to feel self-sufficient?
- How does the image of 'begging' from God change the way you participate in an altar call or private prayer?
- Can you identify a time when you felt spiritually 'green' and growing versus 'ripe' and stagnant?
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Full transcript
0:00>> and having that which is of doctrine,
0:00sound teaching.
0:00>> And so I want to bring you to the word
0:02of the Lord today and tell you about the
0:04true macaria.
0:08I almost said the true macarina.
0:14See there, I got some I got some folks
0:16who used to be in the world. You know
0:18about Macarena.
0:20I don't know about Macarina. I'm not
0:22even sure if I'm saying it right.
0:26But the true Macaria.
0:30Hallelujah.
0:32Thank you Lord for your word. Let it
0:34guide our steps and lead us to be better
0:38disciples
0:39>> in Jesus name I pray. Amen.
0:42You may be seated in the name of the
0:43Lord. Tell them I want to know about
0:45Macaria.
0:46>> Tell your neighbor, I want to know about
0:48Maria.
0:54>> Hallelujah.
0:59Pentecost is a style, but it is more
1:02than that. It is a substance.
1:05Pentecostal churches have always
1:07appreciated sound teaching and doctrine
1:11preaching. So much to the point I
1:13remember back in the days when we would
1:15have a reader and I did it sometimes in
1:18the middle of the uh of the um times
1:21when LXM was up here too. I would have a
1:23reader and going back and forth so that
1:25we could read scripture and there's
1:27something dynamic about that. Then of
1:29course preaching uh is something that is
1:32a non-negotiable in the kingdom of God
1:35because the Lord chose he said by the
1:38foolishness of preaching to save them
1:40that believed. Now that doesn't mean I
1:43want to be foolish but somewhere in the
1:46process of preaching the spirit takes
1:48over and the world looks at it as
1:50something that is not logical something
1:53that's not reasonable. It's not a
1:55discussion. It's not a lecture. It is a
1:59proclamation. Preaching means to speak
2:01with authority. And so you come and
2:03you're not here negotiating whether or
2:05not people will agree it. I just declare
2:08it as the word of God says it. And
2:10that's what we call preaching. And in
2:13the day of lectures and negotiation and
2:15debate, all of that is has its place.
2:19But when you preach the word of the
2:20Lord, it doesn't come where there's a a
2:23a place where you can come back and
2:26debate the subject. Preaching comes with
2:29authority.
2:30>> And so when I give to you today, I want
2:34to give you the the fuel of why when the
2:37conclusion of a service happens, it is
2:40our both our custom, our practice and
2:44are non-negotiable. That at the end of
2:47the service, we all will seek the Lord.
2:51Now, everybody doesn't seek the Lord,
2:53but I'm telling you, it's the will of
2:55God that at the end of every service,
2:59everyone seeks the Lord. Now, I'm going
3:00to tell you why today. Okay, here is our
3:04text. It was read to you. It's not often
3:06quoted the what is been called the
3:09beitudes, the blessing, the happy are
3:12the people. uh and this is where Jesus
3:15is speaking for his first public
3:18statement not in a synagogue but abroad.
3:21The multitudes were gathered around.
3:23This is a period of scripture known as
3:25the sermon on the mountain. and this
3:28sermon on the mount, he gathered his
3:31disciples around him and the multitudes
3:33gather around him and he began to speak
3:35and he gave us these scriptures that go
3:39for about the first three I mean
3:41chapters five to about chapter nineish
3:44of the book of Matthew where he gives us
3:47his life skills the life of a disciple
3:51description kingdom thinking how if you
3:55want to be a part of this kingdom this
3:57is how you will think. And he's laying
4:00it out for them in this sermon on the
4:03mount. It's about a king and his
4:05kingdom. It is countercultural
4:09both to the hour in which he was
4:11speaking and it's different in this
4:13hour. Our church is not culturally
4:16sensitive. I'll tell you that right now.
4:18Our church is not trying to fit in this
4:21culture. We're not trying to be odd.
4:24We're not trying to be weird. We're just
4:26not going to go with the flow of our
4:29culture. We're a part of a kingdom that
4:32is counter the culture that we're part
4:34of. And it's not optional. If you want
4:36to fit and flow in the world, you're
4:38welcome to come here. But you will never
4:40be a disciple of Jesus Christ if you
4:43flow with the thinking and the ideals of
4:47this culture. And uh of course when
4:50Jesus starts this sermon on the mount he
4:53uh knows and is declaring that the
4:55kingdom has already come. It's already
4:57dawning. And he begins by telling
5:01characteristics and attitudes of the
5:03kingdom. And he starts by in our first
5:06verse here it says blessed are the poor
5:10in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of
5:13heaven. So he starts on this litany,
5:16this lists of blessed dispositions that
5:20one has when they become a disciple of
5:23Jesus Christ. And these descriptions
5:25though are not according to what a man
5:27has but according to what a man is. He
5:32describes these character qualities and
5:36he says blessed is that man. In other
5:39words, that word blessed has been
5:41described many ways. It's a big word and
5:44and it is the word that you see mccaria
5:48behind us. That was the root of the
5:51Greek word blessed. And we'll get to the
5:55conclusion of that here in just a
5:56moment. But many times people say right
6:00happy is the man. But the this happy is
6:05a fickled word because sometimes I'm not
6:08as happy as at other times. And uh the
6:13world says happy is the man that has
6:15wealth and happy is the man that has
6:18strength. I like being strong. Uh I used
6:21to be stronger than I am now. And I will
6:23tell you I my um my lagging down of
6:27strength doesn't make me all that
6:29excited. I it was nice to be strong. I
6:33don't try me. I might have a little bit
6:35left. But uh you know happy is the man
6:39who is strong. Happy is the man who has
6:42power. That's what this world says.
6:44Happy is the man who has knowledge. And
6:46uh you get your degree, you get your
6:48graduate degrees, and you go around and
6:50people really fight and contend to make
6:54sure all their titles are spoken of the
6:57degrees that they've received. Because
6:59happy according to this world is the man
7:01who has knowledge. Happy is the man who
7:04has prestige. Happy is the man who has
7:07popularity. And so they go and they try
7:10to get a viral clip and they flip waters
7:13on tables until they can do it and they
7:15celebrate and hope, wow, this one will
7:17go viral. Uh or they go do something on
7:19the social media that can potentially go
7:22viral. Viral sounds like a disease to
7:24me. But you know there's this desire to
7:28have something become very popular
7:30because happy in this world. They say
7:33happy is the man who has prestige. You
7:36know, the the big bees, the beauty,
7:39brawn, and brains and bucks, those those
7:43bees everybody wants. Stunning though
7:46that none of these attributes entered
7:49the mind of Jesus when he was laying
7:52down the characteristics of the people
7:55of God. Nowhere do we see anything
7:58described about Jesus or him wanting his
8:01people to have these other things that
8:04he was speaking of. uh he he said and
8:07started with this very first beatitude,
8:10blessed are the poor in spirit, for
8:14theirs is the kingdom of heaven. I'm
8:17going to dwell on that verse right there
8:19today. There was a minister that was
8:22dying after 40 years of pastoring and as
8:25they got to the end and he was laying on
8:27his his deathbed essentially, somebody
8:30asked him what he was thinking about. He
8:31said, "Well, I preached hundreds of
8:33times on the blessings of God. I've
8:35preached many times about the asurances
8:38of God and the promises of God. But
8:41right now, the verse that I want more
8:44than anything is blessed is the poor in
8:48spirit for theirs is the kingdom of
8:51God." He said, "I want the kingdom of
8:55God." This is the first of them all.
9:00Now, if a man's making a list, generally
9:02first means important. First means
9:05something that needs to be be paid
9:07attention to. Blessed are the poor in
9:10spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
9:14heaven. The ancient world in which this
9:17Bible was written in the time when Jesus
9:20is quoting had their own ideas about
9:23blessedness. Really, they only had two
9:26ideas. There were those who lived
9:28superficially and those were those who
9:30indulged in things and then there were
9:32those who lived philosophically and
9:35that's the way the ancients many times
9:38divided the world view up those who
9:41lived for right now and those who lived
9:43according to a philosophy. And it's
9:45quite astonishing or astounding when
9:48Jesus takes this complex problem and
9:52cuts through all the red tape of how to
9:55be happy, how to be blessed. And with an
9:59unexpected proposal, undreamed of and
10:03unheard of as a way to get blessedness,
10:08he proposes that the most blessed would
10:12be the poor in spirit. The materialist
10:16says, "Blessed are the rich." Jesus
10:18says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit."
10:21The materialist says, "Blessed are the
10:24happy, the merry." And uh the Lord says,
10:27"Blessed are the mourers." That's
10:29doesn't sound very good. Uh the world
10:32says, "Blessed are the mighty." And
10:35Jesus says, "Blessed are the meek." It's
10:38not the way to get a church on their
10:40feet. If I started today with there is
10:44no weapon formed against you that shall
10:46prosper, I will immediately have a lot
10:49more help
10:51>> than I'm getting right now as I walk
10:53through. Blessed are the poor in spirit
10:57for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. I
11:00feel your help. In those days though, it
11:04was even worse than that because we have
11:06what they didn't have. We have a Bible.
11:09In those days there were supposed
11:11secrets to happiness. They called it
11:13paths to flourishing that was proposed
11:16by the philosophers of that day. No one
11:19in that hour suggested that true
11:22humility
11:24uh was a road to blessedness. It wasn't
11:27in their mind. In fact, in the Grecian
11:29and the Latin language, there was not
11:31even a word. Stay with me. There was not
11:34even a word that modeled the idea that
11:38humility,
11:40meekness,
11:42or poor in spirit was even imagined as
11:47something that was good to have. In
11:49other words, it was a vice that was
11:51associated with weakness and shame. that
11:56spirit is alive right now.
11:59>> Okay? Uh if if one is poor in spirit,
12:03then there must be something that you
12:04ought to have in your life that's you
12:07ought to be ashamed of. If if you really
12:09knew how to prophesy and see visions,
12:12then you would not have poor in spirit
12:15as a part of who you are. You would have
12:18confidence in spirit. And of course,
12:21confidence is one of the measures of the
12:23ways of the Lord. But why didn't the
12:26Lord start the biatitudes by saying,
12:29"Blessed are the confident in spirit,
12:32for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." If
12:35I preached the message today on
12:37confidence, boy, and I've got plenty of
12:39scriptures on that, I would have a house
12:42that was ready to march out of here at
12:44the conclusion of this service. But how
12:47dare the Lord force me to start with the
12:51first word
12:54out of his mouth when he's speaking to
12:56the multitudes something that they would
12:59not even perceive or understand or
13:02comprehend as being something that is
13:05great. In fact, if you're going to build
13:06a great church in 2025, certainly it's
13:10got to be a church built on victory.
13:17I'm telling you today, I'm going to go
13:19deep in the Holy Ghost.
13:22>> Victory in Jesus. I love victory. I've
13:25got the victory. I've got the victory.
13:28I've got all the victory songs. I love
13:30victory songs. Jesus, why didn't you
13:33say, "Blessed are those who find the
13:36victory, for theirs is the kingdom of
13:38heaven."
13:41Why do you have to start by dealing with
13:45these things that in that hour was not
13:47there wasn't even a word to describe it.
13:51And in our hour, churches all over are
13:54dispelling the spirit of poor in spirit.
13:58Even apostolic church. Apostolic church,
14:02all you need is a word of faith and you
14:04won't be poor in spirit. All you need is
14:07a a gift of tongues and you won't be
14:09poor in spirit. All you've got to have
14:11is an all night prayer and you won't be
14:13poor in spirit. All you've got to do I'm
14:16telling you ladies and gentlemen, we
14:18have got to hear what does Jesus say.
14:23>> I wish he would have started in a
14:25different way when he started this
14:26thing. But he said, "If you want to be
14:29blessed in this kingdom, and if you want
14:32the kingdom to be yours, then you got to
14:36start by recognizing blessed is the poor
14:39in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
14:43heaven."
14:45>> Every word in the vocabulary of the
14:47Greeks that came close to humility had
14:51tones in it of littleness. If you were
14:54humble, then you had to be little. If
14:56you were humble, then you had to be
14:58weak. If you were humble, then you must
15:00have not had the great revelation. If
15:02you were humble, then it was because you
15:03didn't have a education. If you were
15:05humble, it was because you haven't been
15:06in the power spot. And Jesus takes us to
15:11the start and said, "If you want the
15:14kingdom of heaven,
15:16blessed are the poor in spirit."
15:21And I've heard backsliders say, "Oh, I'm
15:23so I I I you know, the thing about it, I
15:26know going to church is they're going to
15:28make me start feeling bad about myself.
15:30I'm so tired of going to church. I know
15:32what's going to happen. It won't take
15:34very long until I get there and then
15:36some message will come forth and they
15:37try to make me kind of feel bad about
15:39myself. I'm tired of feeling bad about
15:41myself. I want to walk in victory.
15:46>> And so do I.
15:50I just got a problem.
15:53He starts
15:55by saying, if you want to be something
15:57in my kingdom, you've got to embrace an
16:00attitude,
16:02>> poor in spirit. So, let's break that
16:06down. Many people have misinterpreted
16:08this text and some have taken vows of
16:10poverty because they think this means to
16:13be poor is the one. The desert fathers
16:16is where aceticism come from. And they
16:18proposed that isolation from the world
16:21would make them more holy. And being
16:23away from any kind of materialism would
16:25make them more holy. And poor in spirit
16:27meant one literally sat on a column in
16:30the Syrian desert for 32 years. And
16:34people brought him food and took care of
16:37him. And that's where he sat as an
16:39interpretation of spirituality.
16:44And there are still tones of asceticism
16:47that live in the world today. Monks go
16:50and live far away. Some men go and live
16:53in a in a a a a place where they have
16:56never seen a woman in their entire life.
17:00No comments,
17:03please.
17:05Supposedly, this is supposed to make
17:06them spiritual.
17:10>> My wife helps me pray.
17:15But it then there there was a type of
17:18priest that proposed that being poor in
17:21spirit meant that it would make them
17:22more spiritual and it was they they took
17:24on a special name. It was known as
17:26friars. They were radical evangelical
17:30poverty. They embraced and then came
17:32orders in the church religious world
17:35that took on this idea that poverty
17:37meant holy. the Franciscan order, the
17:40Dominicans, the Carmelites, the
17:42Augustinians, they all took a sort of
17:44asceticism or a sort of isolationism or
17:48a sort of vowing for poverty to make
17:52them spiritual. And the world though has
17:54shouted the opposite of that. And so
17:57there's these going over here and going
17:59over there. The world shouts, "Blessed
18:01are the rich. wealth properly managed
18:05should help a person in this world.
18:08There's never been a time where the
18:11Bible says that poverty makes you holy.
18:15It has never promoted poverty as
18:18something that anybody ought to have.
18:21Time has proven that many wealthy people
18:24have been deeply oppressed
18:28and many poor people have been deeply
18:31oppressed. Anxiety and fear can come to
18:34everyone. Readers Digest last year
18:37published an article that gave 13 or it
18:41said 13 things Lockto winners will not
18:45tell you. Was published in March of last
18:47year. And what did it say? It tells
18:50about all these wi winners of the
18:51lottery that's had financial ruin and
18:54lost friendships and family strife. They
18:56tell of depression and anxiety and
18:59despair and some suicide after winning
19:01the lottery. Mental breakdowns while all
19:04of this happening after winning the
19:07lottery.
19:09And so the world says blessed are the
19:11wealthy for theirs is the kingdom of
19:14heaven.
19:15Some in the religious world says,
19:17"Blessed are the poor, for theirs is the
19:19kingdom of heaven." One of the most
19:21tragic stories of all time is the story
19:23of Howard Hughes. One of the richest men
19:25of all uh history, lived in Los Angeles,
19:29he was so afraid of germs, he became a
19:31germaphobe. At the end, there was only
19:33certain Mormon missionaries that were
19:35even allowed to serve in his house. And
19:37he would rent the top of a desert inn in
19:40Las Vegas, Nevada, and live there. And
19:42nobody could come and talk to him. All
19:44he ate was chicken and chocolate and
19:46milk all day. It's gross. It's nasty.
19:51But he who had so much money got so
19:54caught up in thinking, "I will have the
19:56perfect way of being happy." And he
19:59tried to prescribe it his own way until
20:02it was such a sad case at the very end
20:04of his life till his fingernails and
20:06toenails grew so long he couldn't even
20:08walk. He had to be carried wherever he
20:10was.
20:11So, some propose that being wealthy is
20:14the way to happiness. And we have
20:16preachers that are prosperity preachers
20:19that go around and preach, if you really
20:22know how to claim it, you'll be blessed.
20:24You got to plant your seed and you'll be
20:26blessed. I love all those words. The
20:29problem is is they don't teach it in
20:32doctrinal balance.
20:36>> Elms, you're not building this church
20:38right now, sir.
20:40That's the voice of hell. I am building
20:42this church right now.
20:44>> This church will be strong because of
20:46what I'm preaching right now.
20:50>> I believe in giving. I give it. I model
20:52it. And uh the people who handle the
20:54money know we give. Me and my wife are
20:57faithful and steadfast. And this church,
20:59if you're a member of this church, you
21:01give. If you don't give, you're not a
21:02member of this church.
21:04>> It's part of the the DNA of the
21:07cathedral.
21:09But it's not built because we do
21:12prosperity preaching.
21:14>> Because sometimes you can be faithful,
21:16faithful, faithful and have very low
21:19points in your life. And if you heard
21:21some preacher, then they'd say, "Well,
21:23you need to give $77.77
21:26and you'll dance your way out of this
21:27valley."
21:29Listen, you can give $77.77,
21:32but don't start acting like you're going
21:34to get an automatic return from that
21:37money because I've got a Bible full of
21:39people who gave and they were faithful.
21:41And Jesus said, "The tithing you ought
21:44to have done but not left the greater
21:47things undone."
21:50>> Because they understood they they
21:52understood the giving part, but they
21:53didn't understand the part that the Lord
21:55was saying in his very first character
21:58quality that you would be blessed by.
22:02Poor in spirit. There are several words
22:04for poor. One word for poor is being
22:07without. Like the widow with just two
22:09mites. The Bible described her as being
22:12poor. She did not have any money other
22:15than two pennies essentially. It's uh
22:18this this poor uh is a value statement.
22:21But the poor in spirit that is in our
22:24text. It's not a value statement. It is
22:26an attitude. It's a way you think. It's
22:30a way you go about your life. It's a
22:33disposition. Essentially, what this
22:36verse is saying is blessed are the
22:38beggars.
22:40Okay, this is why we have altar call
22:44and this is why some people never come
22:46because they don't want to be a beggar
22:49because when you go to the altar you're
22:50saying I need something
22:54>> and I'd rather people to know I'm pretty
22:56good
22:57so I don't need to be a beggar and this
23:01is what Jesus is trying to deal with
23:02people. The very first beatitude that
23:06will be of disciples is that if you're
23:08going to live for God, it doesn't matter
23:10if you got 10 billion dollars in your
23:12bank. If you have the disposition of a
23:16beggar, then the kingdom of heaven,
23:18we're talking about poor in spirit. You
23:20beg from the Lord. It is a whole
23:24approach to God that comes with a tone
23:27of humility. So when I come to church,
23:30I'm not judging the song or judging the
23:32sermon. I'm not judging the atmosphere
23:35or the temperature. I'm here saying, "Oh
23:38Lord, I know that you have been better
23:40to me than I deserve. And so when I come
23:44into your presence, I'm not walking in
23:46as if I'm entitled. I'm not walking in
23:50as if I'm supposed to have a handout
23:53today. I'm not walking in as if you owe
23:56me. I'm coming in saying, "Oh Lord, I
24:00understand that true blessing comes
24:02through poverty of spirit. It comes
24:05through having the disposition of a
24:07beggar as I walk into his presence." The
24:10Bible says in New Living Translation of
24:12this same verse, "God blesses those who
24:15realize their need for him."
24:21>> Oh Lord.
24:23>> Oh Lord.
24:26Oh Lord,
24:28here's the thing. I've lived for God all
24:31my life. I might as well say it like
24:32that. I've never been backslid. Haven't
24:35always been perfect. Made some stupid
24:38mistakes, but I've lived for God all my
24:40life. But there are ways of living for
24:43God. Sometimes you feel a lot spiritual
24:46and sometimes you feel dead in your
24:49spirit and you even say, "God, I don't
24:52feel anything, but I'm going to worship
24:54you anyway." This is what disciples do.
24:56I'm going to praise you anyway. I don't
24:58feel anything. And there's sometimes I I
25:01wrote a prayer uh for a young man that
25:04was brother Tremble's son called capars.
25:06It it had several points to it. I just
25:08said it somebody this week. And the
25:11second attribute in the a it's an
25:14acronym. Continually is C. Come to him
25:17continually. Second is come to him uh
25:21expressing that you already know that
25:25what's happening. You're aware of your
25:27situation. I'm not always on the top.
25:31I'm not always feeling very spiritual.
25:34I'm not always uh uh feeling like I want
25:38to go to prayer. Not always. And there
25:41are sometimes that I go to pray and I'll
25:43say, "Lord, you know, my old flesh right
25:46now
25:47>> is not wanting to be here." And I know
25:50my flesh is not feeling after you right
25:53now. It doesn't want to. But I know the
25:55Bible says that there's enmity. There's
25:57war between the flesh and the spirit.
26:01And I know there's a battle to be
26:03fought. And I'm feeling this fleshly
26:06part right here. But I'm here to tell
26:08you, I know that without you, I am
26:11nothing. This is why the scripture says,
26:12"Enter into his gates with what?"
26:16>> Thanksgiving. That means you have to
26:18stop and think about
26:21>> what he's done for you.
26:24>> Where he's brought you from, why you're
26:27still standing.
26:30If you think about what he's done, it
26:35changes your whole attitude.
26:38It's not come and bless me now, Lord.
26:41It's I will bless you, oh Lord, with my
26:45hands lifted up. I'll bless you, oh
26:48Lord, from the bottom of my heart. I'll
26:50bless you, oh Lord.
26:56God blesses those who realize their need
26:59for him. The word is destitution.
27:03None of us are destitute.
27:05Listen, the poorest American. The
27:08poorest American is blessed far more
27:11than the rest of the world.
27:13>> There are food deserts in this country,
27:15but it's because of lack of access. It's
27:17not because of lack of food. There's a
27:19drugaddicted somebody in their family
27:21that will not get the children to where
27:23food is, and they leave them at home.
27:25Not because there's not food for the
27:26kids to have. There's plenty of food.
27:28It's because somebody is shut down in a
27:32a a ve very terrible selfishness.
27:36We're all so blessed. We're so blessed.
27:39But even in America, we don't understand
27:43this word. I'm destitute for God. We
27:46think sometimes, hallelujah, I've been
27:49in his presence. We had all night prayer
27:51Friday night. We had back to school
27:53rally, which was phenomenal. It was
27:55great. Uh Friday night as well. Then
27:57Saturday morning, there was a minister's
27:59breakfast and there was so many great
28:01things that happened. I walked in this
28:03house Saturday morning. I could feel the
28:05echo of the prayer that had gone on in
28:07this house Saturday morning. It's been a
28:09wonderful weekend. But if we're going to
28:12be God's people, we have got to own.
28:18>> It goes against every part of my flesh.
28:22>> It goes against the pride that I walk
28:24in. And I know y'all think I'm super
28:26humble.
28:28It goes against all my pride to say, "I
28:32need you, Lord. I'm not just standing
28:35here saying it. I'm literally begging
28:38you, Lord. Come by here, dear Lord.
28:43I need you, Lord. I can't live without
28:46you, Lord. You've blessed me. I've got
28:49great friends. I've got a great family.
28:52I've got so many blessings. But that has
28:54not taken away my sense of desperation.
29:00>> This is one of the most dangerous things
29:02about getting positions in your life and
29:05getting the job you wanted or getting
29:06the husband you wanted or finally
29:08getting the family you wanted and or or
29:10finally getting that position you
29:11wanted. When you get to those places,
29:14you can begin to want others to see,
29:17look at who I am now.
29:20Do you not know who I am? And so even in
29:23the way you respond to the preacher, it
29:25spin sends out voices of my newfound
29:28authority.
29:30Oh yes, that's right. And all you're
29:33doing is emanating and radiating all of
29:36your new found authority instead of this
29:39blessedness that comes through
29:41desperation. It comes through saying, "I
29:44am poor. I am not what I want to be. I
29:48am not where I want to be. I'm without
29:51what I've got to have. And this whole
29:54disposition is what makes me bow down.
29:57It's what makes me lift my hands. It's
29:59what makes me go to the altar after the
30:01sermon is over.
30:05The altar is not a response to how good
30:07the preacher preached that day.
30:11>> The altar is for those who realize their
30:13poverty.
30:17This is why in the design of our new
30:19church building, we've got a big wide
30:20space just like right now. It's not big
30:23enough, but we got a big space for
30:25coming. Because all this is is for the
30:27beggars. Who are the beggars? Who are
30:30those who are willing to say, "Lord, I
30:32thank you for everything you've done,
30:34but I'm not I'm not where I want to be."
30:37You say, "But don't you have all these
30:39things?" Yeah, I've got some things. I'm
30:40blessed, but I haven't lost that hunger.
30:44When I sat across from my dad when he
30:46was dying, it just blew my mind all the
30:48things he was. He's going to be inducted
30:50in the Order of the Faith here at
30:51General Conference in a few weeks. What
30:53an amazing honor for me. He was on a
30:55first ballot, a unanimous vote, and I
30:58cannot tell you if you know about any
31:02Hall of Fames, those are not easy
31:03because of how many people are being
31:05nominated and through the nominees and
31:07all that process. It's just as rigorous.
31:09And I I I know right now a great man
31:12that's been on pause for a long time.
31:15And it's like I can't understand why
31:17some of y'all follow sports hall of
31:18fames. I I follow the order of the
31:20faith. Okay. But it's just it's sort of
31:23the hall of fame of our church movement.
31:25And you and for him to get not just I
31:28nominated him. I'm the one who sent the
31:30letter in, but I thought it might be a
31:32while. You know, who knows? I know great
31:35men that have waited a long time to get
31:37before it could come through because
31:38they have a limit on how many they allow
31:40every year and for my dad to be accepted
31:42in the first nomination and unanimous
31:44vote. Y'all know my daddy, okay? He was
31:47the real thing. But to sit across from
31:49him and all I was worried about is I got
31:53to know him more. I don't know if I know
31:55him like I want to know him. He's so
31:57He's so good. David, I got to tell you,
32:00he's so great. He's so sweet. And I sat
32:03there and I thought, "Dad, after all
32:05these years, can't you just go down a
32:07list of all the things you've
32:08accomplished?" No, not him. Why? Because
32:11he got it. Blessed are the poor.
32:15>> I don't want you to walk out of here
32:16with your head hanging. I'm not asking
32:18you to go into your job and say, "I
32:19don't know anything." No, no, no. Do not
32:21do that. You have misinterpreted this
32:23whole thing. Poor in spirit doesn't mean
32:25poor in preparation in this world. It
32:27doesn't mean poor physically or in in
32:30materially. And you can be a
32:32multi-millionaire and be poor in spirit.
32:35That's the whole aspect. It doesn't
32:37matter who you get are, how long you've
32:39served the Lord. If you've served him
32:41all your life, if you just started
32:43serving him last week, you need the
32:46Lord.
32:49I'm hungry for him. I need him. Ray Croc
32:53went to a little restaurant in in San
32:56Bernardino, California. It was built by
33:00two brothers and he was a franchisee. He
33:03was a large food distributor and he
33:06loved how they did their hamburger
33:08preparations and Ray Croc created
33:11McDonald's that was the original
33:13McDonald's and he sent it out. Now, if
33:14McDonald's is one of the greatest,
33:16largest corporations around the world,
33:19and it was all because of one man, Ray
33:21Croc, who walked in a room in San
33:23Bernardino, California, and loved the
33:25way two brothers were so efficient in
33:28making their food. And now all of you
33:30are happy meal people. Uh-huh.
33:33>> But Ray Croc said this, there were six
33:36words or there were some words that he
33:38built his business on. He said, "If
33:40you're green,"
33:43let me read it right. "If you're green,
33:45you're growing.
33:47>> If you're ripe,
33:49you're rotten."
33:52>> If you're green, you're growing. What is
33:55green? I know it's an old way to say
33:57somebody's still learning.
33:59>> That's what they used to talk about.
34:01That's a green horn. He doesn't know
34:02what he's doing. That's cowboy language.
34:04I'm a cowboy. I
34:06>> That's a green horn. Oh, he's green.
34:08just means he's growing. But this is the
34:11whole aspect. If you're green, you're
34:13growing. Right now, I went to North
34:15Carolina State and one of the coaches at
34:17Northern North Carolina State was Monty
34:19Keifin. Monty Keifin went on to have a
34:21large large football career in in the
34:24pros. He was one of the most remarkable
34:26coaches for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
34:28And who knows who they are. I don't even
34:29know is that is that a team?
34:34But he had two superstar Hall of Fame
34:37players that played for him. And they
34:39say this, the three most dangerous
34:41words. Monty Keifin said, "The three
34:44most dangerous words in football." He
34:46didn't say football, he just said in
34:48life. But it was just came out at the
34:50Hall of Fame this last week when John
34:52Lynch and Derek Brooks talked about it.
34:55The three most dangerous words. And they
34:57were trying to tell all these Hall of
34:59Famers, the people who had made it the
35:01very top, this is what you better
35:02understand. The three most dangerous
35:04words. What are they?
35:08>> I got it.
35:12The three most dangerous words.
35:16I got it. When I heard that, I thought,
35:19I've sung all my life. I've got it. I've
35:21got it. I've got it. I've got it.
35:23There's something about the power of the
35:24Holy Ghost I can't explain, but I've got
35:27it.
35:30>> But let me tell you something about
35:31those three words. There's some assuming
35:34going on when you say, "I've got it."
35:37Some people say, "I got it like that."
35:39>> I want to tell you the spirit that Jesus
35:42built his church. And if this church
35:44ever becomes what God wants it to be,
35:47it's going to be because not that we've
35:49got it like that. Not because we think
35:51we're mighty or we're powerful or we've
35:53got revelations or we're great. No, it's
35:56because we are poor in spirit.
35:59>> We have that disposition of a beggar
36:02that you can say, "Oh Lord, I know I
36:04just banked $10 billion." Say it by
36:06faith. Somebody say, "Amen."
36:08>> Amen.
36:12>> But it doesn't matter what you have. It
36:14doesn't matter what heights you've
36:16ascended to. It doesn't matter how many
36:18dreams he's given you, how many visions
36:21he's given you. None of that matters.
36:23What matters is I'm still so desperate
36:27for the Lord. I'm hungry for the
36:30presence of the Lord. My heart is hungry
36:34for the presence of the Lord. I want to
36:37sit in his presence and the spirit and
36:40the word. Show me the storehouse where
36:44the the glory is stored. My soul is
36:48hungry for the presence of the Lord.
36:51Musicians come. I'm coming to an end for
36:54the spiritual beggar that a banquet is
36:56found in every piece of bread. Jesus
36:59told the story of the one who was
37:02beating his chest in prayer and he said,
37:04"Oh, I'm not worthy, Lord.
37:08>> Help me, oh God. I'm not worthy. I know
37:11you don't want to pray like that,
37:12especially after you live for God for
37:14five years.
37:16I know nobody wants to pray like that,
37:18especially after you you've seen some
37:20visions. The flesh still hates it. But
37:24he said, a Pharisee, who I'm sure had
37:27all the trappings of victory, came and
37:29said, "Oh Lord, I'm glad I'm not like
37:32that one. I'm glad I'm not like that
37:34one." And Jesus asked, "Who do you think
37:38left having been heard from by God?"
37:42There was one who the Lord heard. Oh, he
37:46heard both of them, but he only received
37:48the cry of the hungry, poor in spirit,
37:53the humble heart. Blessed are the poor
37:57in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
38:01heaven. That's how you know the
38:03difference between the wheat and the
38:04tear. Tears are a plant that looks
38:07exactly like a wheat, but the the wheat
38:11they get fruit and the the top of the
38:13wheat and the weight of that fruit bows
38:16them over. A tear it's a fraud. It looks
38:21just like wheat. It grows in the same
38:24field. Has the same coloration and the
38:26same design. The difference is a tear
38:30never has fruit in it. So at harvest
38:33time, the tear will be standing tall
38:36because there's no gravity in it to pull
38:39it over. A wheat you'll always know
38:42because it's bowing over. And while that
38:44may just seem to be a visualization of
38:46what I'm talking about, it's a
38:48disposition of what's going to make you
38:51great in the Lord. It's not saying I'm
38:53defeated all the time. It's just saying
38:56I'm desperate all the time. It's not
38:58saying I'm I'm I'm I'm not accomplished.
39:01It's just saying, "Oh Lord, I'm not
39:03where I've got to be."
39:06[Applause]
39:09The richest blessings come through
39:11bowing. We stoop to conquer. We go up by
39:15going down. We are exalted
39:19when we humble ourselves. That's the
39:22only way I want to be humbled. I don't
39:24want the Lord to humble me. I don't want
39:27you to humble me. I want to humble
39:31myself in the presence of the Lord. Oh,
39:34I already feel your flesh right now.
39:36Your flesh is not wanting this. I got
39:38you. That's all right. I'm just here to
39:40tell you what God sent me to say. The
39:42flesh doesn't want this. It doesn't want
39:44the bowing down. It doesn't want to feel
39:46like I'm poor and I have need. No. Have
39:49you been to my house? Have you seen what
39:50I'm doing? I'm I'm not as rich as I want
39:53to be, but I'm doing all right right
39:54now. Do that out there. But when you
39:57come into the house of the Lord, every
40:00time you hear the preaching of the word,
40:02you need to say, "Oh Lord, that I don't
40:05have it like I need to get it. I'm here
40:07to get more of you. I want more." The
40:10Bible says, "God resists the proud, but
40:14giveth grace to the humble." come. God
40:17comes nigh them that are of a broken and
40:21a contrite spirit. And so I know this
40:24doesn't preach good in this generation.
40:27I know we're all supposed to manifest,
40:29aren't we?
40:32Manifest victory.
40:35Manifest it. It'll come to pass. Just
40:37manifest it. There's some scripture in
40:40that. There's some There's some
40:42scripture in that. But that's not the
40:45first word the Lord said. If you want
40:47the kingdom,
40:49for theirs is the kingdom. I know y'all
40:52appreciate the church, but do y'all want
40:54the kingdom of heaven? If you want the
40:57kingdom of heaven, you've got to have
40:59poor in spirit. Blessed are the beggars.
41:04Oh, the word blessed is rich, happy. Oh,
41:07yeah. We like all that. This past week,
41:11y'all might remember when I brought
41:12brother Terry Black here and he spoke to
41:15LXM on a Saturday and he just visited
41:19with us on a Sunday. Uh he was a friend
41:23of mine and uh he fell terribly and it
41:29was not a good story how he had ascended
41:33to the highest places in the kingdom of
41:35God. He preached the biggest events
41:38around the world. He was esteemed by the
41:41highest of wise and good men. And he
41:47fell and uh it was a great fall. I'll
41:51always remember it was 2020
41:55uh the end of 2021,
41:58the beginning of 2022, I believe, New
42:02Year's Eve. Terry's mother appeared to
42:04me in a vision.
42:07I'll never forget it. I told my wife
42:09about it immediately. It was just so
42:11clear. I I I have never met Terry's
42:13mother. I wouldn't know her if she
42:14walked in that door right now. This is
42:16crazy about God.
42:19when he tells you things, you just know,
42:22even though you don't have this, I
42:25couldn't draw a picture of her, but she
42:27came to me and she said, "Will you
42:31please reach out to my son?"
42:37So that New Year's Eve, I called him
42:40about midnight,
42:41and he wasn't known for answering the
42:44phone. You know, when you get high, you
42:46don't have to answer the phone.
42:49Everybody can wait.
42:52He was my friend, but he was always way
42:56up there
42:58because of talent, gifting, placement,
43:00anointing. He built one of the greatest
43:02churches in Pentecost, Memphis,
43:04Tennessee. It was amazing.
43:07And uh so I called him and left him a
43:10message.
43:11I said, "Terry,
43:14your mother appeared to me and told me
43:16I'm supposed to call you
43:19and tell you
43:21it's not over, sir."
43:23So, he didn't answer that night, but he
43:25called me back the next day and said,
43:26"David, what's going on?"
43:29I said, "I don't know what's going on,
43:30Terry.
43:33I just know your mother appeared to me
43:35last night. I don't know what she looks
43:37like, but I knew it was your mother.
43:42I said, "What you doing?" He said, "I'm
43:44selling insurance."
43:51So he I said, "Well, come down to South
43:53Florida.
43:54I've got to uh got to obey what the Lord
43:59put on my heart."
44:01We brought him down and we had a closed
44:03exclusive session for LXM
44:07where I had Terry talk to you all about
44:12the value of ministry.
44:15That was a test.
44:19The subject was a test.
44:24I said, "You don't have to do it,
44:25Terry." Because when we I drove him
44:27around, I took him to a steakhouse. I
44:29treated him like the great man he was.
44:33But I'll always remember driving up and
44:35down. We drove I like to take people
44:38down to South Beach and show them what
44:40they don't have.
44:45And we were driving South Beach. I've
44:46done this with a few of my friends that
44:48were on the edge of backsliding.
44:50Honestly, I've had kids had them. I
44:52drove them down. I said, "You want this?
44:56You want this? I got it, baby.
44:59This is where you come when you really
45:02want to backslide.
45:05>> Come on,
45:07have it. There's the velvet room.
45:14You want it?
45:16It's right here.
45:19Only the Lord knows what Terry and I
45:21talked about in the car that night, but
45:23it was heavy. If you've ever dealt with
45:26me, you know I can be direct. Many times
45:28I'm not. Most times I'm not, but I can
45:30get there. And I got there with him.
45:34And of course, he came and you all heard
45:36him speak. It was I could tell the Holy
45:38Ghost had not left him when he spoke to
45:40us about the value,
45:43the worth.
45:45He had it at the highest of the heights
45:49and he lost it all.
45:51And he sold insurance
45:55While he was selling insurance, he was
45:58just trying to make sales, barely
46:00living. Oh, he could have gone. There
46:02was several church groups that were
46:04Pentecostal without the separation that
46:06offered him big titles and great jobs
46:09and six-digit annual incomes
46:13to come and just be there. He wouldn't
46:15do it. He wouldn't do it. And I remember
46:18thinking, okay, when you when you fell,
46:21Terry, I wasn't there for eight years.
46:22I'm telling you, I wasn't really there
46:24for his I was there for his wife. Me and
46:26Sister Black, I was there for her. I
46:29called her. I said, "I got you. If you
46:30ever need anything, don't hesitate. Call
46:32me." Whatever. It wasn't until Terry
46:34told me that next day. He said, "Eight
46:37years ago was when I fell."
46:41He said, "And David,
46:44life's different.
46:46It's not a success story.
46:49And I helped Terry find his way back up.
46:54He told me he took a church in
46:55Springfield, Missouri, and he told me,
46:57he said, "I won't take it unless you
46:59give me permission."
47:01Complicated. Yeah.
47:04Complicated.
47:06But he died this past week.
47:11And uh
47:13his funeral's Tuesday night. I will be
47:15there. His kids know who I am to him.
47:20His wife knows what I was.
47:23But I will never forget that night when
47:25his mother appeared to me.
47:28She didn't come to me proud.
47:31She came This is no seance. I'm not I'm
47:34This is not talking to psychics.
47:40This is a moment of her saying, "Would
47:43you reach my son?
47:47So when I stand over his body Tuesday
47:50night,
47:53I'm going to stand over victory
47:57because he never took the bait to go to
48:00the lesser
48:02kind of religion.
48:06Oh, he could have. Would have been easy.
48:09Would have been a great salary. Would
48:11have been a great income. could have got
48:13a big old church,
48:16pastored it,
48:18but poor in spirit was something he
48:20would never let go of. Oh, he didn't
48:22always have that. Listen, when people
48:24are falling, poor in spirit is nowhere
48:26around. That's the reason some of you
48:27all I'm worried about
48:30because poor in spirit isn't close to
48:33where you're at.
48:36You're pretty full. You got it together.
48:38You know,
48:40you know, don't you? You're spiritual,
48:43aren't you? You don't need much more.
48:46You've been around enough to have it all
48:48figured out.
48:54Blessed are the poor in spirit,
48:59for theirs
49:01is the kingdom
49:04of heaven.
49:06Create in me, oh Lord,
49:09a clean heart.
49:13Shall we stand? Renew in me
49:16a right spirit.
49:19Cast me not away
49:23from thy holy presence
49:28as a deer
49:30pants
49:32for the waterbrook.
49:35That's how thirsty I am for you, oh God.
49:39Not because I'm needy.
49:42No. You've blessed me so many times.
49:46Not in material things. No. Not in
49:49friendships. No. Not family need. No.
49:54I don't need better parents. I've got
49:56that. I don't need. Those are not needs.
50:01But Lord,
50:03I need you.
50:08I need you in the morning and I need you
50:10at night. And I needed you when I was
50:14young. And I need you as I go to school.
50:17And I needed you even though youth
50:19Congress was amazing. And I need you, oh
50:22Lord, as I grow older. And I need you
50:26now at my age. And I will not stop
50:30needing you. And when needing you
50:33becomes not cool, when needing you is
50:36not the voice of the day, when saying,
50:38"I've got him all figured out and I've
50:40got God. He's my my my buddy, my pal.
50:44He's my my best bud." No, no, no, no,
50:48no, no, no. I want you, Lord, to know
50:52I'm poor.
50:55I need you more.
50:58I want you more.
51:00I need you in my marriage, oh Lord.
51:03I need you, oh Lord. I need you as a
51:07man. I need you, Lord. I need you in so
51:11many ways I cannot even say. I need you
51:15in the positions that I hold. I need
51:18you, Lord, with my parents.
51:21I need you with my friends. I need you.
51:25And every day I want to come to you at
51:28some point in that day and express my
51:32poverty.
51:34My poverty.
51:36I'm literally wanting to beg from you,
51:39Lord. I'm begging you.
51:43I need you in ways I don't even know I
51:45need you. I'm not dancing right now. I'm
51:49not dancing my way to victory. I'm not
51:52shouting my way to victory. I'm poor.
51:56I have want. I have need.
52:01I'm desperate for you, Lord.
52:05I'm not needing just a savior. I'm
52:07wanting a Lord.
52:09I'm not needing you just bail me out. I
52:12need you to be my best provider,
52:16my companion
52:18in life. I need your wisdom with regard
52:22to my children.
52:24I need you, oh Lord. I'm not going to
52:27open this altar. Only those who want it
52:30will come. It's not open for everybody.
52:33I only want beggars up here. Stay away.
52:37If you're not a beggar for God, stay
52:40there. Don't come. This isn't reverse
52:43psychology. It's me looking you in the
52:45eye and saying, "If you're not a beggar
52:48for the Lord, go on. I need the church
52:52to be filled with those
52:55who know
52:57Lord.
53:00>> Blessed
53:02bless